Safety razor



Oct. 20, 1942. N. TEsTl 2,299,416

SAFETY RAZOR Filed Feb. ,5, 1940 INVENTOR Mahala/5 M BY ATTO NEYPatented Oct. 20, 1942 UNITED A STATES 2,299,416 SAFETY RAZOR NicholasTesti, Boston, Mass, assignor to Gillette Safety Razor Company, Boston,Mass, a corporation of Delaware Application February 5, 1940, Serial No.317,256

v 11 Claims. (CLEO-40) This invention relates to safety razors of thetype in which a thin flexible blade is clamped in position for shavingbetween two blade clamping members, such as a cap and a' guard or bladesupport. The invention consists in a novel razor of this general typeorganized and adapted to receive a blade presented endwise between thecap and guard members while the latter are separated to a lirnitedextent for that purpose, that is to say, the cap and guardmembers areinterconnected to permit limited separation for the presentation of theblade and for all practical purposes the razor thus functions as aone-piece 'razorhaving no. loose parts to become lost or mislaid. At thesame time it is so constructed and arranged that, when desired, it maybe taken down and separated into component parts for thorough periodiccleaning or inspection. It is, moreover, organized so that blades may besupplied by hand or from'a magazine according to the preference of theuser.

The razor of my invention is herein shown as designed for use inconnection with slotted blades shouldered at their ends to define wideunsharp ened end portions, and while it is in no sense limited to theemployment of such blades the invention includes features which are ofimportance particularly where it is desired to use blades of thatdesign. For example, the razor has positive means for locating one endof such a blade by engagement with its unsharpened end portion, and aprojecting rib for similarly locating the other end of the blade.

A novel feature of construction consists in a cap having ablade-engaging face and a connecting portion disposed substantiallyparallel to said face and spaced therefrom to embrace with clearance theblade-supporting member or guard.

Preferably and as herein shown this connecting 40 portion is arrangedloosely to engage part of the razor handle and if desired a spring maybe employed which tends normally to separate the two blade-engagingmembers and thus afford a free passage for the presentation of a bladebetween them or the removal thereof.

To facilitate the employment of a blade magazine, where this is desired,the head of the razor may be provided with one element of interlockingmeans for positioning and holding a magazine in line with the passagebetween the blade clamping members when the latter are separated. Whenso located a new blade may be fed from th magazine directly into shavingposition between the blade-clamping members and maybe accuratelyretained in such position until released at the conclusion of theshaving operation.

These and other features of the invention will be best understood andappreciated from the following description of a preferred embodimentthereof, selected for purposes of illustration and shown in theaccompanying drawing, in which,

Fig. 1 is a view of the razor in longitudinal section and'on an enlargedscale;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in side elevation;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the razor head showing a portion ofthe capmember broken away;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view corresponding to Fi l, butshowing the cap and guard members in their separated relation;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view in perspective of the cap member; and

Fig. 6 is a view in front elevation, partly in section, showing therazor head with a blade magazine in operative relation thereto.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention the razor head includesan elongated bladesupporting member l0 having an upwardly convexblade-supporting surface and adapted to serve as a guard by having teethH arranged along both longitudinal edges. This guard memher isstationary in the razor assembly and cooperates with an elongated capmember l2 having a downwardly concave blade-engagingface,

corresponding in length to theguard member In and being slightlynarrower in width so that it flexes the blade over the convex face ofthe guard member as is common in safety razors of this general type.

The cap member is provided at one end with a downwardly extendingtransverse wall B in which is formed a large opening M. This openingcorresponds in width to an end portion of the guard member to which isreduced by end recesses to fit the opening. The opening corresponds alsoto the projecting unsharpened end portions of the blades and servespositively to locate one end of the blade accurately in shaving positionupon the guard as will be presently described. It also prevents relativerotation of thecap with respect to the guard member. The cap member is arigid .forked structure and has a lower inwardly extending flange l5which is parallel to and spaced a substantial distance beneath theconcave bladeengaging face of the cap. At its inner end the. flange I5is provided with a circular opening [6 of such diameter as to surroundthe razor handle with clearance thus retaining the cap at all times inthe organization of the razor. The guard I0 is provided at one side ofits blade-engaging face by reverse rotation of the wim narrow roimdedlongitudinal-rib n, and

a slot l8 in the cap l2 supplies clearance for this rib. The cap itselfis' provided in its upper por tion with a central threaded hole I!designed to receive the end of a threaded spindle in the handle.

The handle comprises an outer member having eter as to pass fr "elythrough the opening HS inthe flange l5 of he cap and thus acts as aguide therefor as well as a means of connection between a the cap andthe blade-supporting member as already stated. The outer portion of thehandle includes also a cylindrical sleeve or barrel 2| which is pressedon to the head 20 or otherwise permanently secured thereto; The handleincludes also an inner spindle 22 freely movable in the bore of thebarrel and threaded at its upper end to fit the threaded hole is in theupper part of the cap. At'its lower end the spindle 22 is enlarged toform a. knurled head which projects beyond the lower end of the sleeve2| and supplies convenient means for rotating the spindle to engage itwith or disengage it from the cap member and to clamp the cap and guardmembers together with blade-flexing pressure.

A helical compression spring 23 is disposed between a shoulder in the.handle member 20 and the underface of the flange l5 and tends, always tolift the cap member when permitted to do so threaded clamping spindle22.

While the razor herein disclosed is not limited to any particular typeof blade it is herein shown as employing a double-edged blade 30 of theGillette type, that is to say, a blade of thin flexible steel sharpenedalong both longitudinal edges 7 and having shoulders which defineelongated unsharpened end portions at both ends. The blade is alsoprovided with a central longitudinal slot and this is enlarged betweenits end in diamondshaped openings and provided at its center with acircular enlargement of suflicient diameter to I receive the clampingspindle 22 with clearance.

In assembling the razor thus far described I and forked parts of the capmember are located to embrace the guard member In and the upper end ofthe handle member 20 is passed through the opening IS in the flange ofthe cap and fully screwed into the threaded opening in the guard 10. Thecap and guard member are thus rigidly secured for the time being in aninterconnected relation although the cap member is free to move up anddown with respect to the guard member a distance equal to the spacing ofthe flange l5 below the bottom of the guard member l0. Fig. 4illustrates the parts in this normal or open relation, the spring 23holding the flange l5 against the bottom of the guard in and maintaininga clear passage between the co-operating convex and concaveblade-engaging faces of the two members. In the position shown in Fig. 4the blade 30 may be readily inserted endwise from theright-hand end,riding up upon -It will be understood that the reduced end of the guardIt! moves freely in the opening II when the blade is released from.flexing pressure.

I have described the razor of .my invention as being supplied by handwith a single blade but it may be readily adapted to be suppliedmechanically with blades from a magazine. To this end, the guard memberI0 is shown as provided with an elongated perforated boss 24 projectingbelow its lower surface on the side left free by the flange IS. Arectangular magazine 26 of the general type disclosed in my co-pendingapplication, Serial No. 310,804, flled December 23, 1939, now Patent No.2,288,979, issued July 7, 1942, may be provided at-one end with anelongated split stud 21 of such diameter that it may be forcedfrictionally into the bore of the boss 24' and thus serve to maintainthe magazine 26 in bladedelivering position. The magazine herein shownis provided with a delivery slit and rotary bladeeeding wheel '28 andwhen the magazine has been once positioned as shown in Fig. 6 the userhas only to separate the cap and guard members removed from itsconnection with the razor head and the clamping spindle 22 operated asalready explained to move the cap and guard members into theirblade-clamping position.

When the shaving operation has been completed, the spindle 22 is rotatedreversely, permitting the blade-clamping members to be sepathe rib I! inits progress and eventually setting itself upon the guard member It withits advancing end positively positioned by and between thewalls of theopening ll-in the cap member and its other end positively positioned bythe rib II. the clamping spindle22 is elevated and-engaged When'theblade has been thus seated with the threaded opening I! of the cap. The

rated by the spring 23, and the used blade may be withdrawn by hand fromthe side of the head I at which it had been previously presented, or theblade may be shaken out from between the bladeclamping members. As soonas the spindle 22 disengages the threaded hole I9 it drops down outof,the space between the blade-clamping. members and so frees the bladefor removal by endwise movement. p,

While the razor of my invention is essentially a one-piece safety razor,in that all its parts are normally connected or interlocked, it will beunderstood that for purposes of thorough cleaning the outer handlemember 20 may be released from its connection with the guard .member IDand when this is done the handle may be with drawn and the cap and guardmembers separated. In the or ary use of the razor, it is contemplatedthat the cap and guard members will be merely released by manipulationof the clamping spindle 22 to permit the presentation and removal of ablade and flushing of therazor. Under these conditions it will beobserved there are no loose parts in the razor to become lost ormisplaced.

The razor of my invention has the additional advantage of safety in usebecause of the accurate and positive manner in which the blade islocated in shaving position therein and because it is imtaking to shavewith an improperly placed and therefore dangerous blade.

Having thus disclosed my invention and described a preferred embodimentthereof for illustrative purposes, but in no limiting sense, I

claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A safety razor having a head which includes a convex blade-supportingplate, and an oppositely disposedco-operatlng blade-clamping memberhaving in a rigid structure an end wall with an opening to receive oneend of said bladesupporting plate, a flange projecting inwardly fromsaid wall beneath the blade-supporting plate and having slidingconnection with the same, and a spring acting upon said flange andtending at all times to separate the clamping member from the supportingplate. l

2. A safety razor having a head which includes a guard and a cap, theguard havin, a handle and the cap having as a rigid part of itsstructure an underlying spaced flange extending from one end onlyinwardly beneath the guard to connect with the handle, and a spring inthe handle tending at all times to move the underlying flange of the capinto contact with the under face of the guard member and therebyseparating the body of the cap from the guard to permit the presentationof a blade.

3. A safety razor having a head which includes a blade-supporting plateand a forked blade-clamping member which embraces the opposite faces ofthe blade-supporting plate with clearance, the upper portion thereofhaving a blade-engaging face and the lower portion thereof beingprovided with a guide opening, and a downwardly projecting guide on theblade-supmember having in a 6. A safety razor having a head whichincludes a convex blade-supporting plate and an oppositely disposedco-operating blade-clamping rigid structure an end wall with an openingto receive one end of the said blade-supporting plate and a flangeprojecting inwardly from said end wall beneath the bladesupportingplate, said flange having, when the blade-clamping member is released, asliding interlocking connection with the razor head for retaining in therazor the blade-clamping member'of which it is a part.

'7. A safety razor having a head which includes a guard and capsubstantially co-extensive in length, the guard having a handle andthe'cap having as a rigid part of its structure an underlying flange atone end extending inwardly beneath the guard, surrounding the handle andterminating short of the other end of the guard so leaving the latterend of the guard free and unobstructed.

8. A safety razor having a handle, a cap and a guard connected forlimited separation, the cap having at one end of its structure anunderlying flange perforated to slide upon the handle and being thusarranged to retain the cap movably connected in the razor, a springtending to open the cap from the guard, a socket for a detachable blademagazine on that side of the guard left free by the flange of the cap,and blade-locating means at the inner end of the 'guard.'

9. A safety razor having a blade-supporting member with a fixedblade-locating rib disposed on one-half only thereof while the otherhalf presents a smooth surface for the presentation porting plateextending below the bladesupport- I ing plate and received in saidopening.

4. A safety razor having a head which includes an elongatedblade-supporting member provided with a longitudinal rib in its upperface adjacent to one end and at the same end an elongated socketprojecting beneath its lower face, a cooperating blade-clamping memberhaving an upper portion overlying the blade-supporting member andprovided with a groove to receive the rib of the blade-supportingmember, an end wall with a blade-locating opening therein and a rigidconnecting portion underlying said blade-supporting member; incombination with a blade magazine having a projection shaped 'forengagement with 'said elongated socket whereby the magazine may belocated for delivering to the razor head a blade guided by said rib intoengagement with the blade-locating opening of the blade-clamping member.

5. A safety razor having a blade-supporting member, a handle projectingdownwardly therefrom, and a two-part co-operating blade-clamping memberhaving a blade-engaging portion disposed above said supporting memberand a rigidly connected retaining portion located below said supportingmember, the said retaining portion, when the blade-clamping member isreleased, having a sliding interlocking connection with the handle andthereby retaining in the razor said blade-clamping member of which it isa part.

of a blade, and a relatively movable oppositely disposed blade-flexingmember having an apertured downwardly extending wall at one end, the riband said wall co-operating to locate a blade in shaving position on theblade-supporting member. I

10. A safety razor having a guard with a handle, a forked cap providedwith any underlying flange at one end as a rigid part of its'structure,extending inwardly beneath one end of the guard and loosely connected tothe handle for retaining the cap movably connected to the razor. argi amagazine-supporting element at that end of said guard left free by theflange ofthe cap.

11. A safety.raz0r having opposed cap and guard members and aninterposed blade provided with an internal slot and external shoulders,connecting means holding the cap and guard members in spaced superposedrelation, said means extending across one end of the razor, leaving theother end free and limiting the movement of separation of said membersto provide a free blade-receiving passage between them, means adiacentthe connected ends of said members for locating one end of the saidinterposed blade by external engagement with its shoulders, and meansadjacent to the blade-receiving end of the razor for locating the otherend of the bladeby internal engagement with its. slot.

NICHOLAS TESTI.

only and as a rigid part

